"Emergency waiting room"

I presented to Busselton Hospital ED with my young child who had signs of concussion after falling from playground equipment and hitting their head. I noticed the ED was extremely busy and staff were dealing with high acuity cases so I knew I would have an extended wait time and was happy to wait.

I was concerned though that despite waiting in the triage queue, it was 25 minutes before anyone came to ask why we were there. It seemed staff were stressed and wouldn't let people approach them with questions. After 45 minutes waiting I told the triage nurse I was going to leave as my child was getting very upset and would come back if they deteriorated. I felt the nurse was extremely rude and verbally aggressive to me and told me I couldn't leave and that I had to sign a discharge against medical advice form - but I still hadn't even been triaged at this point.

Just under an hour from arrival at the ED my child was finally triaged, and they were seen an hour after that. I have no problem with waiting for care at an emergency department, but I felt I was made to feel unwelcome and like an inconvenience on this occasion. If there are long wait times for triage in ED, I believe patients need to feel they are still being listened to and provided with an opportunity to express their concerns. As an employee in the healthcare system I am usually confident in advocating for my needs, but I felt really uncared for and dismissed on this occasion.